Editorial: County to provide taxpayers with pension details

A huge cutout of a gorilla was placed in the back of the Marin Board of Supervisors chambers as county pension reformers pack the chambers to point out the unfunded pension debt on Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2011. (IJ photo/Robert Tong)
Robert Tong

County officials say they are willing to meet the critics part way by adding a page to the county tax bill informing taxpayers about the county's long-term pension obligation and its retiree health care costs.

Leaders of the Citizens for Sustainable Pension Plans, a Marin public pension reform group, had asked the county to print that information on the tax bill for every taxing agency.

County officials, not surprisingly, were not enthused. They said the information wouldn't fit on the one-page tax bill.

Even before pension critics raised their proposal, county officials were trying to figure out how to fit information seniors should have about their right to apply for some tax exemptions.

But officials have now decided to add a page, explaining the tax bill, advising taxpayers about exemptions and updating the public about the latest facts and figures about the county's budget, including employees' pension costs.

The Citizens for Sustainable Pension Plans is celebrating what it sees as a breakthrough, making Marin the first county in the state that uses the tax bill to inform taxpayers about the pension plan and its short- and long-term cost.

That's a worthy victory. Its members' tenacity on this issue has paid off.

The county's total "retiree-related debt" is $864 million. That's no small-ticket item. It represents employer concessions and promises made to employees, long-term obligations that have grown in cost while the recession reduced county revenues.

California cities such as Vallejo, Stockton and San Bernardino have faced the fact that they can no longer afford the promises they made to their workers, promises based on the unrealistic expectation that double-digit investment gains would pay for them.

Citizens for Sustainable Pension Plans asked the county to follow an example set by the tax collector of Cook County in Illinois, who has budget and pension information for every taxing agency printed on the tax bill.

The county's compromise will provide that information for its own budget and pension program, but not for other agencies, school districts, sewer agencies and public service districts.

If the county does it right — without too much spin — we hope other agencies will follow suit.

Voters in Larkspur, Corte Madera, San Anselmo and San Rafael, who are being asked to vote for increasing local taxes on November's ballot, should have this information before they vote.

After all, the county's spending and obligations are only part of the taxpayers' cost.

County Finance Director Roy Given says the county's inclusion of the information is a reflection of its commitment to the public's right to know.

The county's promise certainly is good to hear. We applaud this step and the county's attempt to keep its taxpayers informed. It is, after all, the public's business.